Managing Resources in Fire and Rescue Services - Assignment Example

Running Head: Managing Resources Managing Resources in Fire and Rescue Services Name Institution Date Managing Resources Fire and rescue service organizations play the important role of fighting fires, response and rescue to those in danger as well as prevention of fires. The number of incidences that emerge are numerous and their time of occurrence is uncertain. It is for this reason that special attention is given to the resources used in the day-to- day activities of fire and rescue organizations. Such resources are limited and therefore have to be well managed to ensure that future fire, response and rescue incidences are handled and not ignored due to insufficient resources. Adequate policies and strategies should therefore be put in place to ensure effective management of resources. About 72% of the expenses incurred by fire, response and rescue services go to their human resources. This is because as a firm in the service industry, emphasis lies in the quality of service offered to the public. The services should be of high quality so as to adequately satisfy the needs of the dwellers in a town. Great attention must therefore be paid to the human resources if at all the goals and objectives if such services are to be met. The best way of managing human resources involves securing the right talents and developing these talents in each individual worker. It also involves ensuring proper cooperation and communication amongst the workforce so that they can synergize their efforts to achieve the desired standards of the organization (Reece, 1993). Processes that ensure proper management of human resource begin with job analysis coupled with staffing. Job analysis involves determining the exact skills, qualifications and experiences that one must possess in order to perform in a certain job position. Such analysis provides information that is vital for the hiring and promotion of personnel, establishment of wages, determination of training needs as well as in the making of other vital human resource decisions. Staffing involves recruiting the right people who possess the qualifications that have been identified through job analysis. The recruitment process includes selecting potential employees, interviewing them and testing their proficiency through varied tests such as psychometric tests and aptitude tests. All this is done to ensure that the skills of the candidates match the employee qualifications of fire response and rescue service organizations. Employee training and skill development is the second key step in the management of the human resource. This is done to align the fire and rescue workforce with the standards and goals of the business. It is important to build their working capacity on a constant basis to ensure that the performance of the organization improves each year. In the fire response and rescue industry, a careful analysis of the training needs is first done and suitable training programmes that met these needs are then adopted. Investment in these educational programmes enables the organizations to reap the benefits of increased productivity, a lower employee turnover and increased efficiency thus financial gains (Amstrong, 1999). Poor performance is responded to with adequate warnings, demotions and dismissals. Absence of employees is also monitored to ensure that mediocrity in the fire service is not tolerated. Performance appraisals and reward systems are another effective way of managing human resource. Performance appraisals involve assessing the performance of each employee and thereafter providing the employees with feedback on the negative and positive aspects of how they performed. With such information, rewards are given to those who have shown past achievements. Rewards include promotions from one rank to the next, salary increments and prestigious badges given to appreciate achievements of great magnitude and long-term service in the sector. Rewards play a vital role in motivating the workforce to improve their individual performance in the future. The management also ensures that activities that are related to health and safety are done in compliance with the laws and regulations of the government. Such legislation protects the workforce from hazards that they may be exposed to in the course of their work and it also upholds the rights that each fire service worker is entitled to. Employees are also members of trade unions, protecting them from discrimination and unfairness in the workplace. The guiding principles to the management of financial and physical resources in the fire service include putting in place a strategic plan and documenting an annual budget. Planning and budgeting allows the management to identify the sources of its funding for its operations. To adequately meet the various operational needs, the fire service receives funding from council tax, business rates, revenue support grants and other sources. About 52% of the funds required come from council tax and any increase in resources used increases the tax imposed on each citizen therefore the financial resources have to be well managed. The funds are used for employee salaries, premises, supplies, transport and capital financing. A strategic financial plan and budget allow these various funds to be accounted for appropriately without any wastage or misuse. Financial statements are accurately compiled in the fire service to ensure that the funds have been put into their intended use. Auditors, internal and external, then assess these statements to give the financial standing of the fire service (Burstiner, 1988). Having determined the financial standing of the organization, the fire service moves towards making efficiency gains in the sector. Efficiency gains mean that new opportunities to re-allocate resources more effectively are sought without the budget of the fire services having to be cut. Such opportunities are identified with the help of auditors as well as external expertise and their aim is to ensure that the fire services have efficiency savings in some areas so as to pump more money into improving the degree of service delivery in the sector. It may call for adjustment of existing practices and policies in some areas of operation. Collaboration with other fire services may also be required so as to find the most efficient methods of spending in procurement, training and civil resilience. Some of the efficiency gains are relatively small and others are more significant but when added together, a major improvement in how resources are utilized is achieved. Another key principle having effective leadership at all staff levels in the fire service. Leaders include managers, supervisors, budget holders and employee representatives and they should all possess exemplary performance and high qualifications. Other than leadership in their respective areas, their role is to look for various methods that ensure continuous improvement in the way resources in the organization are being utilized. They also generate new ideas on better and more effective methods of working with the minimal resources that the fire service has. Better still, various leaders in different fire service organizations can come together and merge their efforts to identify opportunities on how resources can be used more effectively. Examples include being part of the Care Services Efficiency Delivery Programme and the Cabinet office taking initiative in researching on various fire prevention methods to reduce on resources used in the fire service (Green, 1999). Regular organizational assessment by external assessors is another principle that that is upheld by the fire service. This involves having the performance of the fire authorities being assessed to ensure that the resources at hand in the organization are being well managed. The inspections give an overall independent judgment on whether the authorities are channeling resources into their proper use and on how well services are being delivered to the immediate public. Such assessment is carried out by the government through the Comprehensive Area Assessment and it cannot thus be avoided. The fire authorities are then obligated to improve the management of their resources if there are not up to standard. In the long run, financial and physical resources in the fire service are used to provide an effective and efficient service. The final principle is stimulating innovation between suppliers and purchasers on better alternative resources to use in the delivery of rescue and response services so as to provide higher quality services. Funds are also invested into innovative projects as well as related research that aim at discovering new methods of managing resources in the fire service that will result in an improved productivity and performance, for instance, applying e-based services to the fire department. The procurement process in the public service sector has been improved by changing the process from mere purchasing of goods and services into commissioning. It now oversees that an integrated set of various management functions are accomplished, such as, proper resource management and offering value for money. Commissioning is the assessment of the needs in an area, designing them and then securing adequate services to satisfy these services. This has been directed by the government to enhance better utilization of the limited resources that the public service has, to improve the growth of the public service sector and to meet the strategic needs of the public. This ensures that a higher value of services is given to the public for the money they surrender as taxes (Gubman, 1996). The procurement process in the fire response and rescue service begins with bidding for a tender. Advertisement for a tender is done through the media especially by publishing newspaper adverts. Such advertisements expose the whole tendering process to the public eye, enhancing transparency and accountability of the parties that are involved. Tenders who come forwards in interest of satisfying the tender should first and foremost meet the qualifications and standards mentioned in the order before forwarding any application. Partnership working of organizations in the public service is encouraged as it proves to be cost-effective as opposed to numerous smaller contracts especially because the market has large strong suppliers. There are three different procedures for tendering namely open, negotiated and restricted. The fire services prefer to use the negotiated method of tendering because of the emphasis and great importance placed on quality, financial liability, government systems and management of risk in the tendering organizations. A complete tender documentation is sent to the interested bidders of the tender. The complete tender includes a letter of invitation as well as a tender document that hold the tendering instructions. The standards that are desired in the tender are also specified for the applicant to find out whether he can fulfill the tender requirements. The document also includes certain conditions that stand in the event of unusual circumstances that may arise. The desired quality of goods or services is also included to ensure that the needs of the fire services are adequately met. An evaluation model may be included to clarify how the applicants will be analyzed and evaluated and how the contract will be awarded. A questionnaire is also attached to determine the commitment and financial standing of the tender applicants. All these documents are used by the fire service to assist them in choosing the most qualified tender that would provide them with the equipment and supplies and services that they may require for their successful operation. The tender applicants who are able to satisfy all the requirements in the tender document are then scheduled for an interview in which they are to provide the following information: name, registration number and address. The applicants should also include their relevant experience and workload so that the fire service management can evaluate whether they have the capacity to meet the tender needs. Their financial details as well as their environmental policy should also be included (Rossiter, 1996) For smarter procurement, a Management system and Supplier Contract have been established to allow the sharing of tendering information on the contracts and suppliers that have been approved. This allows the creation of standard tender specifications and documents that will be easy to use in any tendering process that the fire service may be involved in. It will save on energy and time spent on each tendering process, allowing managers to focus on other relevant operations in the organization. The central government has teamed up with relevant advisors to gather tools, skills and techniques that aim at commissioning, market shaping and procurement. This helps the fire service to understand their regional and local markets, the aggregate buying power they should have, and how they can access the skills they need in the fire service. Such social issues in procurement have made the procurement process in the fire service rise a notch higher. Financial resources used in purchasing are therefore used more appropriately and money that would have been lost to overpriced goods and services is saved. The procurement process carries numerous risks especially when the tender from whom purchases are made is new and unfamiliar. The risks include the fact that the goods or services may ultimately prove to be unsatisfactory when put to use. The business of the contractor may also fail due to unavoidable circumstances and one’s finances put into procurement may be lost. The contractor may also delay in delivery of the goods or services or fail to deliver at all. This can cause the fire service great losses as its operations may be dependent on the procured goods. Another risk that may occur is the alteration of the commercial environment and the reasons for this alteration may be beyond the control of the fire service, for example, sudden rise in inflation that causes purchasing prices to soar or recession of the economy. Such risks may hinder proper operations and it is for this reason identifying them is essential so as to formulate ways of mitigating them. These risks can be mitigated by taking extra caution during the procurement process to ensure that fraud and unstable contractors are avoided. Insurance policies are also taken so as to protect the business property and employees from unexpected occurrences that may occur in the course of operation. The relevant legislation that structures the procurement process includes the fact that procurement between supplier and buyers should occur without any discrimination. The buyers should also avoid favoring some bidders over others based on family relations or race preferences. The World Trade Organization (WTO) Agreement discourages large organizations from favoring of local suppliers over foreign ones as well. The procurement process according to various laws should be unbiased and should strictly be based on the qualifications of the bidders. Legislation also ensures that the tendering process involves all the official documents that have been mentioned in earlier parts of the text to maintain the professionalism in the whole procedure. All legal formalities also have to be adhered to protect the fire services from any damages and liabilities that may emerge due to breach of contract with the suppliers. Operational assurance and evaluation involves ensuring that the equipment, property, capability competence and training competence in the fire service are maintained. The maintenance and monitoring of elements is done to ensure that there is consistency in the service that is rendered such that when a fire and rescue emergency arises, the emergency will not go unattended to. Operational assurance ensures that there is national interoperability, that is, there is quick and timely response to emergency situations that occur in a country as a means of proper disaster management. In addition to this timely response, operational assurance also ensures that the rescue operation is safe and one that has utmost effectiveness. The fire service enters into a maintenance contract with various organizations that specialize in ensuring operational assurance in their organization. Such organizations include the Transition Board that is chaired by Terry Standing. The organization is to evolve into the National Resilience Assurance Body once it is fully fledged. The government also has arrangements programmes put in place to ensure that emergencies in the country are handled effectively and in due time. This portrays the efficiency of the government when it comes to emergency response. Such programmes however take years to be fully implemented as it involves proper streamlining of practices in various areas of the field. Operations assurance is therefore a long term project that requires adequate research and careful scrutiny before it can be undertaken. It may take time before the benefits of such a programme are reaped but it improves the quality of the service rendered to the public to a level that is satisfactory. This means that the objectives of the fire, response and rescue service are adequately achieved and their goals attained. Research and development programmes are also underway to ensure that appropriate arrangements for operational assurance are established in the future of fire services. Funding for the research activities is done by the central government in collaboration with some private institutions. The research is essential as it enhances the maintenance of assurance levels and that they may only improve and not decline in the future. Transition into any new arrangements that are formulated in the future will have to be done with great caution and only after their success is accurately forecasted. This is done to prevent new unsuccessful arrangements from causing major losses to the fire services that may be costly to recover from. Specialist teams and experts are usually incorporated in operational assurance and evaluation programmes. This creates a solid support system to the programmes and to ensure their continuous growth and development. Specialists also promote high quality practice in the running of operational assurance programmes and ensure that certain operational standards are met. Specialists form a reliable source of technical advice that can be banked on by other interested parties who require the services of existing operational assurance programmes. These experts hold great importance as their contributions play an important role in achieving the aims that operational assurance organizations carry. In conclusion, the performance of the human resource is the centre of fire and rescue services. This is mainly because their rescue services are the main reason for the existence of the fire-battling organizations. Human resource also forms the most importance portion of spending in the fire service. It is for this reason that special attention should be paid to the management of the human resource to ensure that they offer high quality services to the public. The fire service also ensures that financial and physical resources are also well utilized. This is done through the documentation of an annual budgets and strategic plans that guide against poor spending. Emphasis is placed in the procurement process to ensure that reliable contractors are chosen to supply the fire services with the goods and services they need. A careful procurement process also guards against wastage and it ensures that the best value for money is enjoyed. When it comes to operational assurance and evaluation, joint working and greater collaboration holds considerable potential in improving efficiency and effectiveness in the delivery of fire and rescue services, where high quality practice is highlighted. References Armstrong M., (1999) A Handbook of Human Resource Management Practice. Kogan Page Limited. Bustier I., (1988) The Small Business Handbook. Prentice Hall. Green C., (1999) Building Robust Competencies: Linking Human Resource Systems to Organizational Strategies. Jossey-Bass. Gubman L., (1996) "The Gauntlet is Down." Journal of Business Strategy. November -December. International City Management Association (2002) Managing Fire and Rescue Services 3E, International City Management Association Managing Fire and Rescue Services (ICMA) ISBN 0873261283 Pages 538. Johnston J., (1996) "Time to Rebuild Human Resources." Business Quarterly. Winter. Reece, Barry L., and Rhonda B., (1993) Effective Human Relations in Organizations, Boston: Houghton Mifflin. Roberts, Seldon G. and Carlotta R., Human Resources Management. Washington, D.C.: Small Business Administration. Rossiter, Jill A., (1996) Human Resources: Mastering Your Small Business. Upstart Publishing. Solomon, Marmer C., (1993) "Working Smarter: How HR Can Help." Personnel Journal. Ulrich D., (1998) Delivering Results: A New Mandate for HR Professionals. Harvard Business School Press. Read more: Human Resource Management - type, benefits, cost, Principles of human resource management, Position and structure of human resource management, Human resource managementkey responsibilities http://www.referenceforbusiness.com/small/Eq-Inc/Human-Resource-Management.html#ixzz125u9Xhz5 Read More